Keisha Wright is senior vice president of partnerships and purpose at THINK450, the partnership and innovation engine of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA). She's based in New York.
How I got here: "I have roots in event production! I come from a long line of event planners, and family members have always called me the 'production queen.' With this love of events well ingrained in me, when I decided to transition away from my career as an educator, I sought out opportunities that would enable me to create unforgettable experiences. I started my marketing career as a strategist at Nickelodeon, working on events such as the Kids' Choice Awards and the Worldwide Day of Play. At Nickelodeon, I brokered the publisher’s first-ever sports deal with the NFL for Nickelodeon Magazine. The NFL was launching a youth-targeted CSR initiative, Let’s Just Play, and together, we created a Super Kid sweepstakes that integrated Nickelodeon into Super Bowl activities. This is where I witnessed the power of fandom and knew I wanted to work in sports.
After Nickelodeon, I went to work as a marketing strategist for the NBA, where I developed sponsorship platforms inclusive of events, such as the League’s Dribble, Dish & Swish youth skills contest and NBA Fit, the league’s health and wellness platform. I have always found fulfillment in seeing the transformation of an event from idea to execution."
Greatest career accomplishment: "My greatest career accomplishments have been all the purpose-driven work I’ve done. From creating a campaign that encouraged fans to take action to support NBPA members’ fight for social justice and racial equality, to helping change the way the world perceives Black men through the development of custom content and a virtual panel during COVID with Dove Men+Care, to highlighting 20 Black-owned businesses in partnership with Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator through the NBPA Brotherhood Deli (our new, immersive retail pop-up), my work at the intersection of personal passion and purpose is what I’m most proud of."
Something I wish I'd known at the start of my career: "I wish I had been able to foresee how mainstream influencer marketing would become. I started my career in marketing in 2005, managing the Teen People Trendspotter panel, which was one of the early influencer communities. Since my time with Teen People, influencer marketing has skyrocketed and is a preferred method of engaging with audiences for many brands. I definitely apply everything I learned from my time at Teen People to my work with NBPA members, who are 450-plus of the most influential personalities in the world.
I also wish I had learned how to meditate early in my career. Event planning can be overwhelming, and it’s so important to find ways to keep yourself grounded and find balance."
How I've seen fan experiences evolve: "I’ve seen two major evolutions over the past few years that THINK450 is leaning into. One is integrating technology into live events and experiences; the second emphasizes engagement over reach. We are leveraging technology to make our events more memorable. For example, we are using augmented reality (AR) to provide fans with unique event souvenirs. We also use Web3 technology to foster community and drive deeper engagement with our events. For example, we plan to extend our Brotherhood Deli pop-up into the metaverse to enable more fans to interact with it beyond the local market and the larger event that the pop-up is tied to. The Brotherhood Deli in the metaverse will remain always on after the local market event ends.
I’ve also seen fan experiences become more bespoke. Scale is great for mass entertainment, but fans want proximity, access, and a chance to get as close as possible to their favorite athletes and celebrities, so we’re intentionally focused on delivering access and proximity through more intimate activations and experiences that enable fans to get up close and personal with their heroes."
Favorite sports activity to do in my free time: "Being a basketball mom is my favorite spectator sport. My son is captain of his school’s varsity basketball team (go Eagles!), and I absolutely love watching him play. In fact, as much as possible, I am planning my work travel around his game schedule. That recently meant spending only 23 hours in Vegas for the NBA In-Season Tournament so I could make it back to New York for his game."
Favorite moment in sports history: "My favorite moment in sports history is one I witnessed personally: Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals in Los Angeles, which also happens to be my hometown. The Lakers were favored to win and won the opening game, but ultimately, the series went to seven games. It was the first Game 7 in an NBA Finals since 2005. In the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals, the Lakers were leading by four with 11 seconds left in the game, so it seemed like the Boston Celtics still had a shot. The Celtics missed a three-pointer, and the Lakers secured a defensive rebound and ended up winning the game.
When the confetti dropped in the arena, the stadium erupted in celebration. At the end of the evening, Kobe Bryant was awarded MVP, the perfect ending to a great night. This is one of my all-time favorite sports memories."
